-J)ireaioni_}or a:veil grounded Faith. and bc:tr ynu out; and that your fai1h can be no more, than is your perception of the ReafOns wh you fhould bcliLve; and that God doth fuppofe Rea[rm when he infiljt!Jb Faith ; and u{eth Reafon / the tt(f ofjili.tb. Thty that ~rl!eve, and know not w!q, or know no fofficient Reafon to warrant thei 1 ; Belief, do take a fat1fie, an Opmt?n, o.r_~dream for !aah. l know tha~ many hondl hearttd Chrifii~ ans an.: tmable to difpme for thetr Rehg10n, or to gtVe to ethers a fattslactory account of the Rr.z. fms of their faitb or bupe : But yet they have the true apprehenfion of fome folid Kea[on.s in rhem. {dvts; and they arc not Chriflians they know nor why ; And though their k._nowledge be fmall as to the 11umbcr of prop4itiQ1t! known, yet it doth alwayes extend to all rhat is effenJial to Chrijfianity and Godtineji, and they do not believe they know not what: And th.:ir knowledge is greater intenfivcl and in its value and operation) than the knowledge of the leanzedjl- ungodly man in the world. ~, 9·-2· Though 1 mpy not here digrefs, 9r fiay fo long, as l~rgely to open to you the Nature Gro1tnd1, Reafim and Meth•d ofFgith and Godline[f which 1 am pcrfwading you to ·undctfiand ye; ~ fhaU lirfl l~y before you a few Propo~tions, which will be uG.Jul to you, when you areenquiring mto tbefc 1hings, and then a little open.them unto you. Prop. 1~ A life of Godlinrjs, is our living unto God ar God, aJ being_ab[ulutely adJi{ferf, to him. 2. A life ofFaith, i< a living upon the unfew everl,jling Happinefs aJ purch".fid for w ~y Chrijl (with aU the neccffarics tbcrcto) andfreely given Uf by God. 3. Tbc contrary life ofJenfe and :mbelief, is a living, in tbt prevalency of {enfe orJltjh, to thh preftnt · rvcrld, for want of fuch bclicviJtg appre!Jt:njiom of a better, a1jhould elevate the foul thereto, and conq 1 u, tbe J!.efhly inclination to tbings prefent. +-'lbough m:m in innocency needi~tg no Redeemer, might live to God without faith in a Redeem!t; yet l.zpfcd man is nJt only UJtable to Redeem him{elf, b!tt alfo un~hle. to live to God witho~t the grace Of tbe Rcdetmer. It was not only necetfary that he fatufie Gsd1 ;u.Jhce fox us. that he may pc:udon and favt us without any wrong to his Holinefs, Wifdqm or Government, hut alfo that he be our 1eac1Ju by his Doctrine and hisLife, and that he Reve.J from Heaven the Fathers will, and that Objel1ively in him we may fee the wonderful condefcending Love and Goodne[s of a Reconciled God and Father, and that c.ffcUui~Uy be iUumin.::te,fantlifie and qxic~en us by theoperations of his Word and Spirit, and that he p;ote/1 and J:"vtrti, jr#ifie and glorjfie us ; and be the l:Iea4 of Rej!ored f(fan, as Adam was the Root of lapfed man, and as the lapfed SpiriiJ had their Head: And therefore we mull wholly Live upon him as the MediatOr between God and man, and the only Saviour by Merit and by Efficac)'• 5· F.zith is a k.._nowledte by certain credible 'iejHma~ry or Reve/..Jtion from God by means fupernoturJt or rxtr.zordinary. 6. The f<:ter>hd•e of thin• I natuY3Uy revtaled (as the caufe by the elfeC<, &c.) iJ in order befure the Knowledge or Beliif of thihgs revealc~ fopernaturo~. , • . . . . r.. h f 7· It is matter of natural RcvelatJ.M th~t tbcre u a God, that he ZJ mfinzte m hn Immenfity and ~~~!r~j~~:\h~t Etcrnif)', in bU Power, Tr'iflJ.om and Goodncjs ; tiJat he is t~e firjt Co1tje and Vltimate E1td of all things; th~y d11! Cc~ that he is the Pre{erver and over ruling Jifp{er of atl tlnngs, and ,tbt Suprtam Governour of tbt Rati· orum_ ~ac:uc: una! world, 6 nd tbe great Benej.Jflor !Jf all mankjnd) and.the [pecial !oz~ourtr and Rewarder cfJuch aJ cuJtulfi· ~gnl truly.lovc bi.m, feel<_ bi.m and obty him: Al{o th:zt the. Jottl .of man if t'V'?'Ortal; #nd that there is alift fi.a~~~1;er~~-& ofRerrm·d or punijhment to come , and that thiJ life is bm prep.;ralory unto that : that man is bound tJ ~~~: 101 i:npri· LfJVe God bis Ma~er, and ferve him) with all his hear.t and migbt ; aitd to believe that this Labour if m11>, •JU!. not vain : tb.:zt we muft do our be~ to k.ftow God1 will, that 1ve may do it : 'This with much mort ~~::s ~fl;a-- (of which fome part was memioned, Chap. I• §· 2, 3) &c. ) is of Natural Revelation, which lnti· mm:u dicunr, dels mJy know. crroresimprob:~rc. _Sij!:n:t &.' {lJtu:a ex difciplinx inflinJto C medio tu!iffc : .And th~t fome thought that the Jews came from them, p. 4•_6. And L~e-ttitfS hm1fdf _f:uth;to. ~hofe th.tt m:1ke Orpb~IU. the fir~ Pbi!ofophe~? Vtdeant. ewe <JUi ita volu~~t, ~uo lit cen!lndus nonu:~:, qui Dlis cunCb hommum vm:t, &qu~ r2ro :i mrp1bus qwbufq; & fl~~motis homnub~s geruntur, afcu~tt. pag•.._. He fatth~lfothJtthe faid Ma;) held, and 71Jc6pompus w1th them, that men ihould hve agam, and become uumonal. ~he like he faith of many otber Sefrs, It is a thing moll irrational todoubt of the bc!rg of~ the ur._feen ~vor:dr, and th_e more e~~cllcnt mhabJtants thereof: when ';C conftder thn this low and lirtlc part ofGods Cre1rion IS fo m~ I of tnhabmn:s: If_a M:crofcope w1H !hew your very_ eyes a thou!and vliil>Jccrel· tures \"fhich you could never fee withOut ir, nor k~tOIY th.u they bad any bemg, WJII )"OU not allow the pure mtt:l!t&al fight to go m3ca further beyond )OUt Microfcopc? 'Ibaks6 · (J 8. There is {o admirable a concord and correfpondcncy of Natural Divinity with fopernawral, tLt in IAtrt.r 1 ;;';, n:Jt1tral leadi 11 g towards tbe f uperJZatural, and the fupernr.Jtural falling in fo meet where the natJ~ral md· ~nimas dfe_ et~, or fal/.s jhort,_ or is defdlive, that it great!y advantagt~h u~ in the ~eliif offiepernatural Vivi· Jm~or~;al~s · mt)'· Nay, as the LawofNature was exactly fitted to man m hts natural JJtnt~cent eji.;te:, fo the L:JW ~1:t~{~~~ium and fYay ofGr.zce in Chrifi is fo admirably and exatlly tirr_ed.to the H~te of lapfid man fOr his llt~IJ'" ent:umDeus; very and Salvaticn, that the experience_which ~an bath ofh1s .fm and m1fery, may gready p~epare h1m ingenims to peyceive and believe this moA: fllltable Gofpel or DoChme ofRecovery; And though tt may not (U!m _: Pul· be called Nat~tr~Zl, as if it were fitted to i1moccnt N4tHre, or as if it were revealed by Natural ordinary ::~J~:~;~co means, yet may it be fo called, as it is exactly fuited to th~ reftoration of l.zp[ed miferable nature; ~~:~~~~uf~cus : capit cnim' omnil: Velociflimunt mt>u~: u:1~1 per univerfa difcurrit: Fortiflimum ncceflic:u: cuntb cnim fupmr; s~pienliflimum tempus:_ inveni_t n~mque 01m~u.. Q. llttUI'I1pr!nsf:ttl:um rwx an dies? _R. Nox, ,una priu~ ~ie. Q;_LatetneD:oshomf~ male: :1gens? R. Ne cog1unsqu1dem : Q: ~ld dJfficde ( R. S~tpfum nofcere. Q. Qutd facile; It. Ab alto IDQYen. Q: Q_!udfuavJ ~ fimum? R.f·nU. QQ!i~Dem?. R.~odinitio &fine caret. P•J4.20,:ti. ' ' even
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